Streamlining recruitment processes through a new applicant tracking system (ATS) has helped house builder Redrow almost double the number of undergraduates it taken on for 12-month paid work placements on the previous year.

Under Redrow’s scheme, which it has operated for a number of years now, undergraduate students based at Redrow’s 13 divisional offices and on development sites across England and Wales are paid a salary for the period they are with Redrow, with placements offered across a number of departments including construction, land and planning, commercial, engineering, design and customer services.

Over the course of 12 months, participants learn through practical experience under the guidance of skilled professionals, while being paid a salary at the same time. Participants also benefit from internal training courses and have the chance to participate in one of Redrow’s annual community challenges, which further develop transferable skills such as project management, negotiation, leadership and teamwork.

But group HR director Karen Jones told Recruiter in a statement that in the past year, Redrow has invested in a new ATS, which has helped streamline undergraduate recruitment processes.

Before implementing the new ATS, Redrow handled application tracking manually, with applicants facing pre-screening telephone interviews.

Since the new software – Harbour by 3dmarcomms – was brought in last year pre-screening is carried out electronically without the need to spend time on telephone interviews. Applications can be downloaded and marked electronically, and different members of the team can review applications simultaneously, which they could not do before.

Successful applicants are then invited for interview by their prospective line manager at one of Redrow’s divisional companies across England and Wales.

“It’s proven to be successful,” Jones said. “Last year we took on five undergraduates. This year, with our new strategy, we’ve appointed nine right across our business.

“Recruiting the right talent is a big challenge for such a large company and this method means we can manage everything for the divisions, and support line managers by presenting the best candidates so they can make the selection based on suitability to their teams.”

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